Supply and Demand
by aussieaddicted
Summary: Realising they have lost everyone they've ever cared for, Regina and Rumpelstiltskin come together and escape into a deal most deadly. They team up to get revenge on everyone that has ever come in the way of their happiness. And all revenge comes with a price.
1. Chapter 1

Regina woke with a start. She was alone again, laying in the same dark and dingy room she'd called her own since she was eight years old. Nothing but the birds sounded outside and not a mouse stirred within the castle walls. The nightmare had been the same she'd been having for weeks - one where she'd lost everyone she'd ever loved. She'd lost Daniel over and over and that had hurt the most - each time different, every time more painful. Waking up was becoming more of a chore with every day she had spent without him and yet here she was, pushing on and on anyway. That's what a princess must do, she was always told. So she did. Regina was supplied with rules and was demanded to follow them. Every day a new one, every night the same one - long, dark and cold. Shivering, she moved to her balcony and realised it had been opened as she slept. _Strange_, she thought. Stepping back, she stumbled upon a pebble and another, and another. _Where had they come from?_ "Hello?" She called, getting up. Looking around the room slowly, she noticed things that she hadn't before - shadows on the wall, cracks in the corners and spider's webs hanging from her vanity. Something caught her eye - or was it _someone_? Was that?

"I'm baaack! Did you miss me?!" Startled, Regina fell back into her vanity chair and realised who's presence she had fallen into. "Oh... it's you again. What could you possibly want this time?! You startled me! You're lucky I didn't scream, you know." "We all know you're too smart to say a word now don't we, dearie?" Rumpelstiltskin cleaned his hands on his tights and pulled out his dagger to check his reflection before putting it back into place. He was a funny old fellow - in charge of the darkness, great at manipulation, self-proclaimed king of heartlessness. Someone you wouldn't really want to cross unless you were prepared to pay the price. "Why are you here?" Regina said, her lip quivering. "I want to save you from your nightmares and this..." dusting her vanity with a finger, he gathered his words. "I want to make a deal, dearie. Don't think I don't know how you're feeling - I know every nightmare you've ever dreamt. I know of every person you've ever lost. And I know every promise you've ever broken. I know your darkest secrets, Regina and no matter how much you try to hide, we all know who you really are, now don't we?"

"What's the deal?""Well, dearie. I've been thinking..."  
"Thinking... what exactly?" Regina asked with distaste.  
"You need a getaway. I can give you that. I need a partner. You can give me that. An eye for an eye..."  
"An eye for a... Wait... Partner?"

Rumpelstiltskin tapped his feet slowly around the room, poking at her belongings, throwing some clothes in a bag, and gathering all of the gold he'd noticed laying around in Regina's pots and pans. "Yes. A partner," he continued. "A partner in revenge."


	2. Chapter 2

"One man's trash is another's treasure, dearie."  
"What's the price?"  
"There is not a price on revenge because the results of our revenge is the reward I seek."  
"You're twisted, old man."  
"I might be twisted but I am only as old as my latest plan."  
Rumpelstiltskin jumped and hopped across to the balcony.  
"Are you coming, princess? Or do I have to drag you with me?"

Regina thought of the latter but decided against that idea and figured that the only way she was going to get away from the plan was to follow it through. She needed an escape and was wishing for one terribly not only an hour before. Picking up her gathered belongings, she turned one final time as she realised she could never return to this life of luxury and expectations.

"I'm coming."

Only moments later was she flying through the sky with whatever magic the little imp must have collected to start their journey of pain and perfection. There was to be no mistakes because she couldn't turn back now.

As they were soaring through the trees of the dark forest, Rumpelstiltskin screamed above the wind: "Being my partner in revenge, there are rules. Rule Number One is that you can never turn back. Rule Number Two is that we do not supply mercy or comfort. Rule Number Three is that you listen to every instruction precisely as given. Four, you must never feel regret because we are ruthless. We never feel regret. And Rule Number Five is that we do not under any circumstances, get caught. Do you understand me, dearie or do I have to make you understand?"

"Oh... I most definitely understand."


End file.
